The exodus of Syrian refugees accelerated dramatically in recent months, with over 1 million refugees arriving in the first five months of 2013 alone. More than half of registered refugees are children and three quarters of registered refugees are living with local host families and communities in both urban and rural areas. If current trends persist, it can be expected that over 3 million Syrians would have left their country by the end of 2013.

On this first day of Ramadan, Ziad, 31, returns to his family’s caravan, after working a shift as a door guard in Za'atri refugee camp. “Last Ramadan I was in prison,” this father of 3, told me. His wife and children would call him. “Come home papa, come home,” but each time he would have to tell them, “I can’t, the door is locked.” He becomes emotional as he remembers those days, recalling that he was unable to buy gifts for his children. Last year he was in a prison and this year he's a refugee. “It’s like death” Ziad says. “My parents and all my brothers and sisters are still in #Syria.” As I speak with him, the TV in the background reports bombing in his home village. It’s a constant internal struggle not to pick everything up and return, but the safety of his young family, and another baby on the way, keeps him rooted. “Every day my son Tarek prays with me,” he says. Ziad is far from being home, but at least he is with his children this Ramadan.

It's 3 year old Shawqi, who is looking out from the inner room of his family's tent in Za'atari refugee camp, Jordan, on April 30, 2013. He lives with his parents and 5 of his siblings in this tent. Between them they share 6 mattresses and blankets. Shawqi recently returned to the safety of Jordan after a harrowing journey with his mother back into Syria.

This World Refugee Day we ask, what’s the most important thing you would take if you were forced to flee? Here you see 37 year old Waleed* (whose name we changed to protect his identity) posing for a portrait in the Médecins Sans Frontières clinic where he works in Domiz refugee camp in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Waleed fled Syria with his wife and their newborn baby in early 2012. “Twenty days after my wife gave birth we left the country. It took us two hours to reach the border. We stayed in a village close to the Syrian/Iraqi border for two nights before finding a smuggler. We paid 1100 USD to cross the border. I left the country for the sake of my family. I don’t want to see my children grow up as orphans.” The most important thing that Waleed was able to bring with him is the photo of his wife that he holds here. Although they are still together, he says, "This is important because she gave me this photo back home before we were married, during the time when we were dating. It always brings me great memories and reminds me of my happiest time back home in Syria.” So what would you take?

Meet Bushra. Fifteen days ago, she crossed the border to #Lebanon in the middle of the night. When she saw a sign that said she was in Lebanon, she told us "I felt relief; I realized that we had escaped death." Today, Bushra registered as the one millionth Syrian refugee at our center in Tripoli, Lebanon.

Hamad, two and half years old, had just arrived from Syriain Domiz camp, in northern Iraq, with his family. For the past year, he and his family of four fled from town to town inside their war torn country. Here in Domiz, with the help of UNHCR, they are receiving mattresses, kitchen sets and blankets. Later on they will be given a tent, their first real home in over 12 months. UNHCR has a permanent presence in the camp responding to the needs of Syrian refugees who fled from violence and war. #UNHCR/ @eujinbyun

Four year old Rima lives with her family in Nizip camp, Turkey. She said she likes cats very much and also playing with baby dolls. "I'm very happy today...with my new toys," Rima said. Children are the ones who suffer the most from wars and conflicts.

A Syrian refugee in Greece: remembering better days, hoping to return one day

Leilah can't hold back the tears when she leafs through the family photo album. It's the only thing she managed to bring with her from Syria – a potent reminder of better days with her husband and six children in their home country. They led a happy and relatively comfortable life running a small village shop in northern Syria until the war broke out more than two years ago. Today, the 40-year-old Leilah lives in a dilapidated apartment in Athens with her children, two of whom were out looking for work when UNHCR visited. Her husband remained in Syria and she has no idea if he is safe or not.

Finding shelter

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What do you want to be when you grow up?

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Ramadan - First day

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Who is that peeping out of his tent?

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World Refugee Day - Most Important Thing

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One in a million

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Hamad, two and half years old

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Four year old Rima

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A Syrian refugee in Greece: remembering better days, hoping to return one day

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IMAGES & VIDEOS FROM THE CRISIS

Syrians stream into Iraq's Kurdistan Region

17 Aug 2013

Days before the sudden influx, monitors reported that people were arriving by bus and setting up makeshift camps on the Syrian side of the Peshkhabour border crossing.

SOURCE UNHCR/G. Gubaeva

Syrians stream into Iraq's Kurdistan Region

16 Aug 2013

Thousands of Syrians stream across a bridge over the Tigris River, entering Iraq on Thursday at a point where movement is normally tightly controlled by both countries. UNHCR's Field Officer, Galiya Gubaeva, was on the ground with her camera. "There were lots of smiles when people arrived. Many had waited for days in temperatures reaching 40 degrees and so there was a sense of relief," says Gubaeva.

SOURCE UNHCR/G. Gubaeva

Syrians stream into Iraq's Kurdistan Region

16 Aug 2013

For the moment, the UN refugee agency is not clear what caused this sudden movement.

SOURCE UNHCR/G. Gubaeva

Syrians stream into Iraq's Kurdistan Region

16 Aug 2013

The vast majority of new arrivals are families - women, children and elderly - mainly from Aleppo, Efrin, Hassake and Qamishly.

SOURCE UNHCR/G. Gubaeva

Syrians stream into Iraq's Kurdistan Region

16 Aug 2013

Some people say they are on their way to see relatives in northern Iraq and others said that they had just

SOURCE UNHCR/G. Gubaeva

Three Syrian siblings, aged between three and eight, register as refugees in UNHCR's office in Zamalek.

07 Jul 2013

Three Syrian siblings, aged between three and eight, register as refugees in UNHCR's office in Zamalek. Almost 80,000 Syrian refugees have registered in Egypt. These children and their parents came to Egypt three months ago after their Damascus home was destroyed by bombing.

Syrian refugee Moazez looks out of a window in her family's rented apartment in the Beit Al Alia neighbourhood of Sixth of October City. Fifty-year-old Moazez and her family fled their hometown of Homs in western Syria about a year-and-a-half ago. They spent nine months in Latakia, Syria's main port on the Mediterranean, before heading to Egypt. 'We had to leave because the situation was very bad, raids, no water, no electricity, no food. We didn't have any choice,' she says.

A nurse holds newborn Syrian refugee Zaid at the Mahmoud Charity Hospital in Cairo. The boy's 25-year-old mother, Maram, arrived in Egypt two months ago. She fled Syria following a bombing attack that destroyed her home and killed her neighbours.

A Syrian holds his child as he waits to register as a refugee at UNHCR's office

07 Jul 2013

A Syrian holds his child as he waits to register as a refugee at UNHCR's office in the Zamalek neighborhood in Cairo. Registration is important, especially for the most vulnerable, who benefit from the help that it brings.

Syrian refugees Alaa, aged 21, and her mother Mariam, 49, seek financial assistance at the offices of Islamic Relief in Cairo. Alaa arrived in Egypt five months ago. She lost all of her possessions when her home in Damascus was destroyed during the fighting.

Some of the most vulnerable Syrian refugees are children who have sought shelter in urban areas with their families. Unlike those in camps, refugees living in towns and cities in countries like Iraq, Turkey and Jordan often find it difficult to gain access to aid and protection. In a refugee camp, it is easier for humanitarian aid organizations such as UNHCR to provide shelter and regular assistance, including food, health care and education. Finding refugees in urban areas, let alone helping them, is no easy task.

In Iraq, about 100,000 of the 143,000 Syrian refugees are believed to be living in urban areas - some 40 per cent of them are children aged under 18 years. The following photographs, taken in the northern city of Erbil by Brian Sokol, give a glimpse into the lives of some of these young urban refugees. They show the harshness of daily life as well as the resilience, adaptability and spirit of young people whose lives have been overturned in the past two years.

Life is difficult in Erbil, capital of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The cost of living is high and it is difficult to find work. The refugees must also spend a large part of their limited resources on rent. UNHCR and its partners, including the Kurdish Regional Government, struggle to help the needy.

A baby girl sleeps on a mattress in the room that has become home for her family

07 Jul 2013

A baby girl sleeps on a mattress in the room that has become home for her family. Originating from the town of Deir ez-Zur in eastern Syria, her family is one of four living in a partially-constructed home. About 30 people share the cold, draughty space in Erbil.

A nine-year-old Syrian refugee runs up the stairs of the partially-constructed building where she and her family are living in Erbil

07 Jul 2013

A nine-year-old Syrian refugee runs up the stairs of the partially-constructed building where she and her family are living in Erbil. They fled from Deir ez-Zur, Syria after a shell hit their neighbour's house, killing everyone inside. She said the most frightening thing in Syria was the sound made by the tanks. 'It was even more scary than the sound of planes, because I felt like the tanks were coming for me.'

SYRIAN-JORDAN BORDER, June 20 (UNHCR) – In the hours before dusk, people wait along the windswept border between Jordan and Syria, desperate for the opportunity for safe passage. Arguments break out. They shout across a berm at Jordanian soldiers who calmly guard the border. They want to know if now is the time to cross.

A soldier gives the word and they run. They run as fast as they can. Fathers drag their sons. Women, children, old men and old women move as fast as their legs will carry them. They run because they are thirsty, hungry and desperately afraid. They are the most recent refugees from Syria's two-year civil war.

GENEVA, June 4 (UNHCR) – The UN refugee agency on Tuesday said it has been seeing small numbers of refugees arriving in eastern Lebanon after escaping from the embattled Syrian town of Al Qusayr, where heavy fighting flared up three weeks ago.

The refugees, mostly women and children, have told UNHCR staff that the strategically located town in western Syria has been badly damaged and the living conditions are extremely difficult. They said the route to Lebanon was dangerous and it was unsafe to travel with men.

AMMAN, Jordan, May 31 (UNHCR)– Abdul, a 37-year-old refugee from the northern Syria city of Aleppo, navigates the hardscrabble streets of Amman's Al Ashrafyeh district with watchful suspicion.

The slightly built father of four children, one of whom is sick, is careful not to spend too much time on the street. When he goes outside, he keeps to himself. "I don't interfere with anyone in this neighbourhood," he says. "I don't say anything. I don't deal with them."

There is a clear tension in Al Ashrafyeh, where Syrian families have arrived in search of shelter over the months. This refugee community is far from wealthy and there are concerns about the burden they may represent.

ZAHLE, Lebanon, May 27 (UNHCR)– It's 11 a.m. at UNHCR's Zahle Registration Centre and the hall is packed. Thirty-year-old Dana, who arrived in January with her four children after spending months on the run in Syria, is here to be registered as a refugee. This will ensure that they get the aid and protection they need.

UNHCR concerned about Syrians stuck at the border, reiterates call for international support

24 May 2013

GENEVA, May 24 (UNHCR) – The UN refugee agency on Friday called on countries around Syria to keep their borders open for refugees while stressing that "urgent and robust" international support for host countries and aid organizations was vital.

ARSAL, Lebanon, May 23 (UNHCR)– It's test day at the Arsal Public Second Shift Middle School and the students in the 8th Grade maths class are engrossed in their exam. They factor numbers, write a series of equations in the form of a single power – all in French, a language they have come to learn only since starting school here in north-east Lebanon two months ago.

"These children come to school with a deep desire for learning," says Ali Hujeiri, 55, the school principal. "They know what they've missed and now they appreciate the value of their education."

Number of Syrian refugees tops 1.5 million mark with many more expected

17 May 2013

GENEVA, May 17 (UNHCR) – The UN refugee agency announced on Friday that the number of Syrian civilians who have fled their country to escape conflict has passed the 1.5 million mark. "The Syrian conflict continues to have a devastating impact on the lives of those who are forced to flee," added UNHCR spokesman Dan McNorton in Geneva.

He told journalists in Geneva that the real number was probably much higher, adding that "this is due to concerns that some Syrians have regarding registration."

Caritas Lebanon Migrant Center (CLMC) is a specialized center of Caritas Lebanon, one of the most prominent non-governmental organizations (NGO) in Lebanon. Every year, CLMC helps more than 120,000 migrants and refugees by providing comprehensive assistance and legal counseling to these vulnerable human beings, in line with our moral values of solidarity, human dignity and self-reliance. Through our mission and vision, we aim to fight abuse, social exclusion, prejudice and discrimination.

People in Need (PIN) is a Czech-based non-governmental, non-profit organization providing humanitarian assistance and development aid worldwide. Over the 20 years of its existence, PIN has administered projects in over 50 countries around the world. PIN is an active member of Alliance 2015, Czech Forum for Development Cooperation, EU Monitoring Centre, Eurostep, Concord and VOICE.

PIN mission to Iraq has been established in 2003 in southern Missan province, when the organisation focused on assistance to the displaced population, rehabilitation of schools and health centres or income generation courses. Between 2004 and 2009 the mission was coordinated from Jordan and PINs focus shifted to civil society development. With its return to Iraqi Kurdistan in 2010, PIN continues to work both in Southern and Northern parts of the country.

International Medical Corps is a global, humanitarian, nonprofit organization dedicated to saving lives and relieving suffering through health care training and relief and development programs.

Established in 1984 by volunteer doctors and nurses, International Medical Corps is a private, voluntary, nonpolitical, nonsectarian organization. Its mission is to improve quality of life through health interventions and related activities that build local capacity in underserved communities worldwide.

International Medical Corps' work in the region began in 2003 and includes rapid emergency response, health systems strengthening and service provision, mental health and psychosocial assistance, maternal and child health, protection, women's empowerment, community development, and water, sanitation, and hygiene. A wide network of long-standing relationships with local partners and government ministries is a key feature of International Medical Corps' work in the region, which has rapidly expanded since the initial start of activities in Iraq to include Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Gaza, Libya, Tunisia, Turkey, and Yemen.

International Medical Corps began its operations in Lebanon during the summer 2006 war and played an integral role in the provision of emergency relief to conflict-affected populations across Lebanon. IMC remained in Lebanon following the August ceasefire to assist in reconstruction efforts and still maintains a strong presence in the country implementing a diverse set of development initiatives that range from health and mental health activities to education, livelihoods development and water and sanitation.

International Medical Corps has implemented several projects since its initiation in Lebanon:

WHO is the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends. In times of crisis or disasters, WHO leads the health Cluster with the following functions: coordination, assessing and monitoring health needs, capacity building and filling health gaps.

CARE is one of the oldest and largest non-religious and non-political international organisations in Jordan, having worked in the country for more than 50 years. This small, arid country has very limited resources and is one of the most water scarce countries in the world.

There is high unemployment, particularly among women and threats to stability by conflicts in neighbouring countries. More than one million Palestinian refugees live in Jordan, alongside many from Iraq.

CARE’s focuses on fair opportunities for women in the job market, supporting the development of viable civil society organisations to manage natural resources and to assisting those affected by emergencies.

Food and Livelihood Security:
Jordan is the fourth most water scarce country in the world. 91 per cent of Jordan is situated in an arid or semi-arid zone where farming is very precarious.

CARE is running projects promoting permaculture technologies to restore soil fertility to produce crops with less water and no chemical additives.
These small projects have demonstrated clear benefits for rural families.Working through local community groups, farmers are selected to take part and show others the advantages for farming in this way.

Civil Society Strengthening:
All of CARE’s work in Jordan is in partnership with local organisations. This helps us to assist local people find solutions to their problems in ways that best suit them. CARE assists women to become involved in the work of local organisations so that their views are heard.

Womens' Empowerment:
Traditional limitations on women’s freedom to work and make decisions within their homes and communities mean they are disproportionately affected by poverty.

CARE has established savings and loans schemes so that women can pool their resources to start businesses and buy essentials.
With CARE's assistance, women’s groups have been set up to provide a forum for the women involved to take action for change in their communities.

CARE is developing a women’s employment agency, to operate as an independent business providing fair opportunities for women in the labour market.

The Arab Women Organization of Jordan (AWO) is a non-profit advocacy woman NGO established in 1970.

AWO advocates for the recognition of women's rights as human rights and for the promotion of legal and political reforms that catalyze positive change.

AWO builds partnerships to create solidarity among women and aggregate their efforts in the struggle to end discrimination and violence against women. Through Mosawa Network; a national network for empowering women at the community level, AWO initiates structures and systematic dialogue to promote women’s rights and the provision of services to the poor, vulnerable and the marginalized.

The long standing and on-going AWO programmes and initiatives target the sectors of gender equality, human rights & democracy.

Innovative approaches are applied to involve women in claiming their rights and to increase their participation in the development processes & the decision-making at the national and local levels.

Terre des hommes is an international charitable humanitarian federation which concentrates on children's rights.
In Lebanon, TdH's response to the influx of Syrian Refugees is focused on Education through the provision of remedial classes and recreational activities in Bekaa. Besides, TdH is also implementing Protection activities through Home visits in Aarsal.

Action Against Hunger specializes in responding to emergency situations of war, conflict, and natural disaster. Their program areas include nutrition and health, water and sanitation, and food security.

They currently implement in Northern Lebanon water and sanitation activities and Food Security emergency interventions assessments in response to the influx of Syrian displaced .

The Danish Refugee Council (DRC) is a private, humanitarian organization founded in 1956. We work on the basis of humanitarian principles to protect the rights of refugees and Internally Displaced People (IDPs) and promote durable solutions by which the situation of the displaced can be permanently and satisfactorily resolved - enabling them to live normal lives.

WFP in the Region: As the protracted conflict in Syria intensifies, citizens continue to flee to Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq. Syrians are arriving in these countries with few assets, limited livelihood opportunities and little cash; families are becoming increasingly dependent on humanitarian assistance. Joint needs assessments of displaced Syrians in these neighboring countries showed that food is a top priority.

To respond to these urgent food needs, WFP launched a Regional Refugee Emergency Operation that provides food assistance as part of a broader framework of support to refugees under the leadership of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

WFP supports strong partnerships with Governments, United Nations organizations and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO), and is aligned with the United Nations Syria Regional Response Plan. WFPâ€™s Regional Emergency Operation to cover the food needs of refugees who have fled to neighboring countries was launched in July; the estimated cost of the operation is currently US$62 million.

The ICRC has been present in Iraq since the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq war
in 1980. Protection activities focus on people detained by Iraqi
authorities, including Kurdistan regional authorities. ICRC delegates
visit tens of thousands of detainees throughout the country, talk to them
in private, and provide the relevant authorities with confidential
feedback on the detaineesâ€™ treatment and living conditions.

The visits also enable detainees to keep in touch with their loved ones,
through Red Cross Messages, distributed in cooperation with the Iraqi Red
Crescent Society to families in Iraq and abroad. The ICRC, in close
cooperation with the respective governments, is also following the fate of
thousands of missing persons as a result of the several conflicts in the
region, and provides support and expertise in forensic medicine as well as
in conducting joint excavation missions.

Assistance activities, which focus on remote and neglected areas prone to
violence, involve helping IDPs and residents restore their livelihood,
with a focus on households headed by women, supporting primary health care
centres and physical rehabilitation centres through the provision of
material and training of medical personal and repairing and upgrading
water, sanitation, health and detention infrastructure.

The ICRC also continues to promote IHL among weapon bearers and to support
the Iraqi Red Crescent Society in building up its capacities in the field
of First Aid and Disaster Management.

In a nutshell, in 2012 the ICRC:
- further extended its operational out-reach into remote areas prone to
violence in the centre of the country and the disputed territories;
- conducted 231 visits to 109 places of detention holding approximately
38'161 detainees under Iraqi central or Kurdish authorities;
- contributed to progress made in clarifying the fate of people missing as
a result of the 1990-91 Gulf War and the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War,
facilitating seven joint operations to exhume and transfer human remains;
- assisted 11'857 women heading household, amputees and farmer in rural
areas prone to violence (with 57'513 dependents) with livelihood support
projects, cash assistance and income-generating projects;
- improved access to water, physical rehabilitation and primary health
care for 1'844'522 residents, IDPs and returnees through the
rehabilitation of water and health infrastructure, material support,
training and coaching;
- assisted 36'264 residents, refugees, IDPs and returnees with emergency
assistance (food, non-food and water).
- continued to provide, along with the International Federation,
institutional support to the Iraqi Red Crescent.

Mercy Corps alleviates suffering, poverty and oppression by helping people
build secure, productive and just communities. In Lebanon, Mercy Corps is
focused on new efforts to help Syrian refugee children and Palestinian
children from Syria traumatized by the ongoing conflict through several
youth programs, including Comfort for Kids, Moving Forward and arts
programs.

Caritas Lebanon Migrant Center (CLMC) is a specialized center of Caritas Lebanon, one of the most prominent non-governmental organizations (NGO) in Lebanon. Every year, CLMC helps more than 120,000 migrants and refugees by providing comprehensive assistance and legal counseling to these vulnerable human beings, in line with our moral values of solidarity, human dignity and self-reliance. Through our mission and vision, we aim to fight abuse, social exclusion, prejudice and discrimination.

By the end of the year it is estimated that half of the population of Syria will be in need of aid. This includes an anticipated 3.45 million Syrian refugees and 6.8 million Syrians inside the country, many of whom will be displaced from their homes.